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Statue Square (; lit. "Empress' Statue Square") is a public pedestrian square in Central, Hong Kong. Built entirely on reclaimed land at the end of the 19th century, Statue Square consists of two parts separated by Chater Road into a northern and a southern sections. It is bordered by Connaught Road Central in the north and by Des Voeux Road Central in the south. The name is a reference to the statues, mainly of British royalty, which stood on the square until the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong during WWII. Today, the only statue on the square is the one of Sir Thomas Jackson, 1st Baronet, an early HSBC banker. ==History== The square was built at the end of the 19th century on land reclaimed by the Praya Reclamation Scheme. The idea of a square of statues dedicated to royalty was conceived by Sir Catchick Paul Chater.〔(The Statues of Statue Square ), Hong Kong by Liz Chater, privately published July 2009〕 Initially named "Royal Square", it gradually became known as "Statue Square", a name derived from the fact that it originally contained the statue of Queen Victoria, as the square's name in Chinese testifies.〔 This statue was ordered to commemorate the 1887 Golden Jubilee of the monarch. It should not have been made in bronze, but in marble, an error that wasn't picked up until the bronze statue was almost completed.〔〔Wordie, Jason. ("The square that put an old queen in her place" ), ''The Standard'', 2 May 1999〕 It was officially unveiled at the centre of the square on 28 May 1896, the day officially appointed for the celebration of the 77th birthday of the Queen. A statue of Sir Thomas Jackson, 1st Baronet, the chief manager of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation was unveiled on 24 February 1906 by the Governor Sir Matthew Nathan. At that time, the statue was facing the HSBC building. These statues (except for the statue of Jackson), together with the two bronze lions in front of the HSBC building, were displaced to Japan to be melted by the occupying Japanese during World War II. The Cenotaph, a replica of the Cenotaph in Whitehall, London,〔(Brief Information on Proposed Grade I Items, pp. 53–54 )〕 was unveiled on 24 May 1923 (Empire Day) by the Governor Sir Reginald Edward Stubbs. It was built on the northeastern section of Statue Square, facing the Hong Kong Club Building.〔("1923 Unveiling the Cenotaph" ), Gwulo: Old Hong Kong website〕 This area is now only uncommonly referred to as part of Statue Square. After the war some of the statues were brought back to Hong Kong. Sir Thomas Jackson's now stands roughly in the middle of the square, facing the Legislative Council Building. Queen Victoria's statue was placed in Victoria Park.〔 The two HSBC lions are now again in front of the HSBC building. The bronze statue of George V, also removed by the Japanese, was lost and never replaced after the war.〔 Since the 1980s, there has been a tradition for thousands of Filipina domestic workers to congregate in and around Statue Square every Sunday (their usual rest day of the week). A parallel tradition has since been developed in Victoria Park for Indonesian domestic servants in Hong Kong. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Statue Square」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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